CANMORE – A Canada Day staple in Canmore won't be running for a second straight year.
The July 1 Canada Day Fun Run and Walk was cancelled as organizers cited preparation time needed wasn't sufficient and a lack of confidence in putting an event in motion safely during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“For most people on the board, it didn’t feel right to have it again this year so we’ll plan a bigger event for next year,” said Alain Parent, program director at the Canmore Nordic Ski Club, which organizes and operates the run.
“We were talking about moving it to the Canmore Nordic Centre; we didn’t want to give it away for another year … it brought the club together both participants and volunteers and people from out of town I know were coming to it. It was part of their family thing to do on Canada Day, but not this year.”
The run and walk was also cancelled in 2020.
Next year will be a milestone for the event that's survived a flood and pandemic, celebrating its 30th anniversary.
The three kilometre, five km and 10 km run and walk starts and ends at Centennial Park in downtown Canmore. It normally has 500 participants lacing up and about 70 volunteers making it run smoothly.
A typical Canada Day in Canmore starts with a pancake breakfast in the park, followed by the run and walk, and then the Canada Day parade on Main Street.
